
Glass __L_B- 



Book. 



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OREGON 

HIGH SCHOOL 

ACTIVITIES 



BY 

J. A. CHURCHILL 

SUPERINTENDENT OF 
PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 




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SaleMj Oregon : 

State Printing Department 

1916 







D. of D, 

DEC 9 vm 






HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITIES 



The trend of modern education is to teach the 
pupil to think in terms of the group rather than in 
terms of himself. 

A forceful speaker, this last fall, said : "The 
battles of democracy in the tAventieth century are to 
be fought, not for the rights of the individual, because 
these battles have been fought and vpon and the 
principles of individual liberty established, but for 
the proper assumption of duties and responsibilities 
toward society by the individual." 

For many years our excess of democracy has so 
developed an exaggerated individualism that today 
it seems to the thoughtful student that it is the 
greatest hindrance to the establishment of community 
consciousness. 

Every teacher should require each pupil to do the 
work assigned him thoroughly and well, not only for 
the enrichment of his knowledge and skill, but for 
the value of such a habit upon all his undertakings. 

But communities no longer believe in the royal 
priesthood of scholarship. 

A student who works daily for grades and makes 
that the end of his school work becomes self-centered 
and never comes into a partnership in the activities 
of the social and industrial life of the community 
he is to serve. 

Vast sums of money are now being spent on our 
schools and communities are demanding that public 
education represent and perpetuate the best ideals 
of the race by controlling the forces that make for 
all that is best in modern life. 

A willingness to assume social responsibility is a 
most valuable equipment for citizenship and any plan 
for providing it through school instruction should 
challenge our interest. The attention of this Depart- 
ment has been called recently to the plan of the 

3 



Forest Grove Higti School for promoting the spirit 
of cooperation on the part of its pupils and for aiding 
in their socialization. 

Each pupil is required to earn at least fifteen 
points in the various activities before any of his 
grades are recorded, thus holding him for the training 
he should have for some of the duties of community 
membership. 

Different schools will have different classifications 
for their activities and some, of course, will include 
athletics. We present herewith the plan of the Forest 
Grove High School as written by City Superintendent 
H. A. Inlow for the careful consideration of the 
teachers of the Oregon High Schools. It is possible 
that the experience of all, after trying the plan, will 
enable this Department through its next High School 
Course of Study to organize more definitely this worli. 
J. A. CHURCHILL, 
Superintendent of Public Instruction. 



THE ORGANIZATION AND DIRECTION OF 
HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITIES 

By Bt. A. Inlow, Forest Grove, Oregon. 

The following plan for the organization and 
direction of high school activities, excepting athletics, 
was adopted in the Forest Grove High School in the 
year 1914-15 and continues in use there. It is pre- 
sented here with such modifications from the original 
plan as the experience of two years' acquaintance 
with its workings would seem to justify. 

The purpose in working out a plan of this sort 
was to give every student an opportunity to discover 
and develop his particular abilities ; to train him in 
unembarrassed and effective public appearance ; and 
to help him to establish a point of contact between 
his school work and the affairs of life. 

Taking as a working basis the recommendations 
of the Oregon High School Course of Study that 
there be exercises and training given in oral expres- 
sion as a part of the regular course in English, each 
student was informed that in addition to such oral 
^vo^k as might be required or given in the classroom, 
he would be required to make further public appear- 
ance by participation in one or more of the activities 
organized under the direction of the faculty ; that 
this requirement was for such work as might clearly 
fall under the head of English training, but that if 
he so desired he could choose in lieu of this strictly 
English work, some other activity for which he might 
feel himself possessed of some special aptitude. These 
activities were classified under the heads of Student 
Body Organization, Debate and Oratory, Literary 
Society, Dramatics, Glee Club, and Orchestra, with 
one or more teachers assisting and directing in each. 
The outline of the plan as presented to the students 
appeared as follows : 

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1. Each student in the high school shall be 
required during the year to earn 15 points bj' partici- 
pation in one or more of the activities designated 
below. 

2. This work shall be considered as a part of the 
regular course in English and the grade in that 
subject for the second semester shall be withheld 
from any pupil who has not earned the required 
number of points. 

3. It shall rest with the faculty to determine 
when any student has fulfilled the above require- 
ments. 

4. Points may be earned in the various activities 
as follows : 

A. student Body Organization 

1. President Student Body 10 

2. Editor Scliool Annual 10 

3. Manager Scliool Annual 10 

4. Secretary 5 

5. Treasurer 5 

6. Associate Editor Annual 21/4 

7. Manager any branch of school 

activity 2% 

8. President Senior Class 2% 

B. Debate 

1. Participation in Tryout 5 

2. Participation in Intra-school Debate.. 10 

3. Participation in Inter-school Debate.. 10 

C. Ijiterary Society 

1. For 80% attendance at meetings 5 

2. Each appearance on program 2% 

3. President Literary Society 2% 

D. Dramatics 

1. For 80% attendance at meetings 5 

2. Major p'art in school play 10 

3. Minor part in school play 5 

E. Glee Club 

1. For 80% attendance at practice 5 

2. Each authorized public appearance.... 2 V^ 

3. Each appearance before school only.. 1 

F. Orchestra 

Same as for Glee Club. 

The student body organization referred to had 
been previously effected and is similar in purpose and 
form to that generally found, including the support 
and encouragement of student affairs but not extend- 
ing to student self-government. 

6 



In the beginning no restriction was placed upon 
the freedom of choice but it soon developed that so 
many students were turning to glee club and 
dramatics who had only mediocre or less than 
mediocre ability along these lines that the tryout 
system was adopted for the former and a plan of 
recommendation by the English teacher from the 
three upper classes for the latter. 

Indicating the comparative enrollments in the 
several activities the figures for the year 1916-17 are 
given : 

School enrollment at date choice of activity- 
is indicated 233 

Number enrolling for Debate 30 

Number enrolling for Girls' Literary 

Society 66 

Number enrolling for Boys' Literary 

Society 47 

113 

Number enrolling for Dramatics 30 

Number enrolling for Girls' Glee Club 

(after tryout) 32 

Number enrolling for Boys' Glee Club 

(after tryout) 24 

56 

Number enrolling for Orchestra 16 

The relatively low enrollment in Orchestra is due 
to the fact that several high school students had 
been admitted to practice in an orchestra under the 
direction of the musical instructor of the local college. 
The excess of the total enrollment in the several 
activities over the school enrollment indicates the 
number participating in more than one activity. 

The teacher directing each activity is responsible 
for the character of the work done therein. A 
definite program of accomplishment is entered upon 
in each line of work and this is correlated, insofar as 
is practicable, with the regular class work. 



Syracuse, 



IN. 



PAT.JAN. 21,190S 



